A "terrorist-related" group has taken captive three Japanese nationals in Iraq, NHK television reported Thursday.
The report said the kidnappers are demanding the withdrawal of Japan's Self-Defense Forces troops from Iraq as a condition for freeing the three Japanese and are threatening to kill them if the demand is not met within three days.
The three, two men and a woman, were indentied as Noriaki Imai,Soichiro Koriyama, Nahoko Takato, according to the NHK.
When responding to a phone call from Xinhua, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said it had no comment on this issue for the time being.